LOVE 4 THE CHILDREN

Greetings, dear brothers and sisters. We are grateful to God that during November we were able to attend the Rudensk boarding school. We noticed that more children started to come to our meetings, often we can see new faces, which means that we have new acquaintances. We are glad that we have a new meeting place – a sports hall, I am very glad that everyone can come to our meetings and there is enough place for all the guys. It’s nice to see how the guys bring their friends and how they talk: – Come on, it’s interesting and fun there.

Also this month I had an interesting conversation with Sergey. He moved from another boarding school to Rudensk. Sergey told me a little about himself. I have three sisters and a brother. What are your interests? – I really like swimming, and I am glad that the Rudensk boarding school, to which I was recently brought, has a swimming pool. What else would you like to learn? – I would like to learn how to play tennis and also ride a bike. Sergey, what do you like to do in your free time? – I really like to read, because reading calms me down. What are your favorite subjects at school? – I really like the subject of labor training, because I like to work with my own hands.

Do you have a dream? – Yes, I would like to get a license and be able to drive a car. How long have you been at boarding school? I have been in a boarding school since I was a child. What was the most important decision you made at school? – The main decision was to quit smoking and swear. What would you like people to know about you? – That I am responsible and I like to help people, especially children. I am also a good and loyal friend, very devoted to my friends. What brings you joy in life? – Alyona, who is coming with you, she brings me joy. She talks to me a lot and makes me laugh. And also it brings me joy when I eat ice cream. Sergey, what surprises you about God? – That He is a defender, He is faithful and always answers my prayers. Through the meetings with the guys, I learn different news, and I can also understand how God loves me, and it also seems to me that I am becoming smarter and more responsible.

Also this month we talked about the “Good Samaritan”, about the importance of helping those who need it so much. Because of our low self-esteem, we often expect someone else to do it and we stand aside. But this story has shown the importance of timely assistance to those who are nearby. It’s always more valuable. Also this month we talked about the “Ten Virgins”, talked about the importance of preparing for significant events. But most importantly, we must prepare to meet God. Christmas is coming soon, it’s important to think about what this holiday means to me? Who is my Savior? Another time, when we arrived, we talked about talents and took the Biblical story “About Talents” as a basis. God loves people so much that He blessed each person with special talents and many guys shouted out what they could do. And we talked about the importance of developing these talents for the benefit of people.

Thank God that God opens especially the hearts of children, that after meetings, new guys ask for the Bible so that they can read stories with us and get to know God. The last theme of the month was “Wise Builder”. A wise builder chooses the right foundation for construction. We also have to build our lives and look for friends who will help us make the right decisions. The wise builder from the Bible did not have a house collapse because it was on the right foundation. We also need to build our lives so that God is our foundation and support, then everything will be fine for us, despite the difficulties. Dear friends, thank you very much for your prayers and for your support, may God bless you in all your ways!

I’ve just recently started visiting the kids in Rudensk, and thanks to the summer camp most of them know me. And with the guys, which I was the leader of in the summer camp, I even have great relationships. Sure, they are always glad to meet us, to tell us about themselves, to ask how we’ve been doing. Interestingly, they always notice every change, every detail in one’s appearance. That surprised me at first. Later on I got used to it. There is a girl, when meeting always hugs me and says: ‘ My dear Nadya, I’m so glad to see you! I love you so much!’ It’s worth a lot.Now we tell them Jesus’ parables.  I like that most of His stories teach us about God’s nature, His Love, His character. By these parables we try to reach children’s hearts, to explain, that even though something wrong may happen in our lives, we always have our loving Father near us. Way more near than we think.

Almost each meeting at least one kid tells me about his or her bad dreams, and we always pray for them together. So that the kids know, that if they are afraid of something – turn to the Christ- He will protect you. I always teach them, that God will always remove our fears, we should only ask Him. Hi will never leave us. I’m sure, they will keep these words in hearts. One girl told me that after our conversations even her sleep is getting better. I understand that it’s not because of me. I don’t know how it works, but I believe, that Holy Spirit does His work among them even after we leave. My goal in this meetings is to share what I have in abundance, my Love. God is Love. I believe that even though God is everywhere, sharing our Love we in a way introduce the guys to the Holy Spirit. He shows them His character. It delights me.

I remember that many kids were hooked on the topic of forgiveness. When asked if God forgives criminals, most answered that no – it is not easy for them to accept that God is forgiving. That time, no one shared their story of unforgiveness with me. But earlier in the camp, one girl had told me how she had been offended by her entire family, who abandoned her. I think such stories are common. On the last trip, one girl of about 10 years old cried so bitterly that everyone left her, no one calls or visits her. It’s very difficult to find a proper word in such situation . There is nothing much to say. I’m not sure that at that moment she took my words, which sounded something like this:”Angelina, I can’t imagine how much it hurts you and I can’t explain why this is happening in your life. But I want you to hear me now.

Even when your family is somewhere far away, not near you, no matter for what reason, you always have Jesus. He knows how to wipe away your tears, He knows how to comfort you. He loves you very much and doesn’t want you to cry.” I hugged her and added, “He hugs you like that. When you’re in pain, tell Jesus about it.” She nodded. Apart from spiritual food, of course we do not leave children without entertainment. I noticed that most of all they like outdoor games, where they can run, jump and shout.

Something intellectual holds the attention of only a few and quickly tires them out. The same thing with songs: they get bored with more melodic ones, but sing fun songs  with pleasure and movements. Their favorites are when interacting with other people like “Wave your hand to everyone” – this is how they especially like to communicate with us. And in conclusion, I would like to say that children’s prayers touch your heart – the most sincere and natural: “Lord, help me to be good,” “Excuse me for saying bad words,” and so on. The tradition of praying in circles at the end of a meeting (when each child goes to the adult he wants to) is my favorite. This is how we develop in them a habit of common prayer for each other. And we see the fruits of it.

This year, September was sunny and warm just like in summer. Usually, in such weather, children spend most of their time outside and they have a choice between coming to our meetings and rushing outside and spending time there. We tried to organize our meetings so that we could communicate with children who did come and with those who ran away outside. We spent the very first trip of this month completely outside. Our team was divided into several groups, in which we communicated with the guys on topics of interest to them, found out how they spent their summer, what good things happened in their lives, and also learned their prayer needs, for which we then prayed with them.

And also, each person from our team shared their testimony from life, telling how Jesus can help us. At one of the meetings, we organized sports relay races for the guys. I like this time because we have the opportunity to learn more about the character of children, see how well or poorly they get along with each other, how they are able to accept victories and defeats, as well as how they are able to work in a team and support players who may be weaker due to their physical limitations. We were there with the guys to guide, correct and support them in critical situations.

In the following meetings, we talked about why Jesus helps people, and also that He is ready to accept them as who they are. We also discussed why Jesus went to the cross. Next, we started a series of topics on Bible stories from the New Testament. The children especially remembered the “story of the prodigal son”. It was difficult for them to understand and accept that the father forgave the prodigal son without any reproaches, let him back into his house, fed him and gave him all the best. But God does the same thing – forgives and accepts everyone who opens their heart to Him! At the end of the meeting, a girl, Polina, came up to us and said that she really wanted a Bible for herself.

At such moments, I realize that each of us, no matter if you are an adult or a child, still needs God’s word. We know that there is a Bible in the school library, but for children who ask for it personally, we always try to bring a separate book for them personally. During our ministry to orphans, we have become convinced that children who read the Bible not only know the biblical story well, but God also heals their minds and hearts, making them able to accept and accommodate the truth. A lot of these guys, after graduating from school, when they come to new cities to work or study, find a church for themselves and stay there. For me, this is joy of victory of God in the lives of the orphaned children we serve!

Hello everyone. Thank God that He gives strength and desire to go to the children in Rudensk, communicate with them and lead them to Jesus Christ. Many thanks for your prayers. In May, we told the children that God is an omnipresent God, that He is near, that He hears our prayers and He is not far from each of us. Just as God is Light and there is no darkness in Him. We told the children that if they believe that they walk with God but walk in the dark: they slander each other, offend, steal, call out, do not listen to the elders and educators, then God does not want this and that such a person is still in the dark, we tried to make the children look at their fruits. We constantly pray for children and together with them during our meetings, children tell us what to pray for them and share their experiences and their lives, it really encourages me to continue to come and participate in their lives, helping them come to Christ, pointing them to Him both in prayer and in words, and in business and in our games with them.Also in May the children did crafts and thank God that they can just chat with believers and sometimes a whole lesson just to do something together, I believe that this also strengthens our friendship with them and communication.Also in May, we held a lesson with them on the topic “the impossible is possible” and we took the topic about how Jesus pacifies the sea and that everything is possible for Jesus. So that the children would know that He is God and that we need to trust Him and go to him. It is always very interesting when someone asks questions about the Bible, it shows that children think what they are talking about. I am very glad when we can sing songs with them and just play something fun and interesting. During the games, too, the children’s hearts are very open, you can immediately see who behaves and how who treats each other. We also have to constantly admonish them so that they do not slander each other and do not offend.

This part of the trip is always present. But we also try to encourage them. I was surprised when one of the guys named Sasha took me aside and asked: “but I’m reading the Bible and praying, and then what? What should happen?” – I was very glad that he asked this question and was just as glad to give him time and explain why God wants to communicate with us and that we communicate with Him and what prevents our communication and how we reconcile with Christ. Also in May, my wife and I took 2 girls for foster care for the weekend they are Sveta and Bojena, we were happy to go with them to nature, light a bonfire and chat, we were also glad that on Sunday they could be with us at a meeting and watch how the church gathers and what it does. We are also always glad when we can once again personally tell them the good news about Christ and the Kingdom of God.

Please pray for the service of children in the boarding school. I see how Scripture speaks about the importance and value of us, the disciples of Christ, being a light for children in boarding school all the time, they need it more than the children of believing parents. They don’t have believing parents, they don’t have a church, and if not we then whom will tell them about Christ? and if we don’t tell them, then how can they be saved? Even if sometimes they are not attentive or often you do not see in them an interest in Christ, unfortunately, our responsibility before God is to be a light for them and bring this light about the glory of Christ directly to their home in boarding school – so that they can hear. Romans 10:17 “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing comes from the word of God.” and it is also written: Proverbs 22:6 “Instruct a young man at the beginning of his path: he will not turn away from it when he is old”.